FF8 - One Stolen Moment
by Astarte
Summary: A combination of poem and story about Seifer at the Parade (w/TacomaSquall)


> **One Stolen Moment**  
A collaborative effort  
by Astarte and Tacoma Squall  
  

> 
> _I stand here,  
On the brink of my goal,  
The fulfillment of my dream -  
Just heartbeats away. _
> 
> _Soon to be  
The valiant Knight-Protector  
Of the Sorceress Edea -  
Queen-to-be of Galbadia. _
> 
> Its so close that I can almost taste it: the adulation, the fame, the glory that I've longed for. I thought that I wanted to be a SeeD but that goal seems so foolish and shortsighted now. All that I would have been was some mercenary, a soldier for hire, some unimportant nobody. Would anyone weep at the passing of Seifer Almasy the SeeD? Would Galbadia or Timber or Winhill or Balamb care? No, of course not. They wouldn't care about some soldier who might have been attacking them last month only to die in their cause this week. A SeeD is nothing to them except cannon fodder to fight their wars. I am far better than that and I deserve far more. I will not die an anonymous bit of cannon fodder in some other country's war. 
> 
> Edea saved me from myself. I was acting like a boy, a foolish and indecisive child. She saved me from my own lack of vision and showed me where I was headed. She then showed me where I should be, where I was always intended to be. I could see it in her eyes and I knew that I was always meant to be hers. I was supposed to be her knight in shining armour. I am the only one that she can trust, I am the only one that she can depend upon. She looks to me to save her from her enemies, to shelter her from harm. She depends on me to protect her. She needs me. There is nothing so wonderful as feeling needed and I know that I am the only one that can fill that empty spot at her side. I am her Knight-Protector. 
> 
> Once upon a time, she was my beloved matron, my guardian angel. She was the single most beautiful thing on the face of the earth. She had exquisite eyes and spun-silk hair that ran through your fingers so sweetly. I used to dream of growing up to marry her, I could hardly wait. I've been in love with Edea since I was six years old. She was once my guardian and now she is my Queen. I look forward to the day when she will turn to me for more than just friendship. I dream of it every night. Oh, how I wish to smother her with kisses. For now, I satisfy myself with standing at her side as she claims the crown of her God-given birthright.  
  

> 
> _People cheer  
As we pass by them,  
Dancers before us  
In lush pageantry. _
> 
> _Closing in,  
Soon the parade will be over,  
Our ascendance guaranteed,  
Culmination of all I dreamt. _
> 
> All around us are the adoring masses, they drink in her magnificent presence, her indescribable beauty. They are falling madly in love with this queen of queens, this goddess come to earth. Dancers surround us, gyrating madly in wild expressions of ecstasy, the masses cheer in deafening roars; all this is for her, my Queen, my Lady, my matron. It is for me as well, for they can see my worthiness, they can sense my superiority and my strength. They know that I must be the best for I am at her side. 
> 
> The parade winds its way through the streets in an overt show of our power, our superior skill. When it has ended, Edea will ascend to her rightful place upon the throne and I will be there beside her. It is everything I have ever dreamed of. I steal a glance in her direction and see a face of such noble beauty, such incredible royalty, that I cannot believe that she was ever relegated to some miserable and isolated stone orphanage. No wonder she is here now, taking what should have been given to her from the start. 
> 
> Cid doesn't deserve a woman like this, this alabaster beauty. She knows it too. I made the subtle suggestion and she agreed wholeheartedly. Cid Kramer is going to have an unfortunate accident shortly, a rather fatal one. All that we need is the opportunity to strike and that weak-minded worm is history. She needs a strong man, a vital man, a man that can let her be a queen and a woman both. When her so-called husband is dead, I will be there for her. I will be her strength and her saviour and her lover. She is everything that I have ever wanted. I will be everything that she needs. 
> 
> God, I love her so much. I would die for her and I will most certainly kill for her. I made up my mind about that the moment she asked me to be her knight. If anyone is stupid enough to stand in her way, whether one man or an army, I will kill them all. What are a dozen, or even thousands, of lives in the face of her? Nothing. I will do whatever is necessary to help her achieve her goal, and by extension, my own. If that means wholesale slaughter, then so be it. 
> 
> _Confusion,  
The gates of the Deling Arch  
Fall before and behind us,  
What madness befalls? _
> 
> _A report,  
The cra-ack of a rifle,  
A sniper's attempt spoiled  
By the Sorceress' power.  
  
_
> 
> The sound of sudden panic and I start looking around. I can sense trouble. I turn to her, to my Edea, but its already too late. I watch in stunned shock as the gates of the Deling Arch fall down around us. Someone is trying to trap my Queen. I glance towards her and see a look of surprise on her lovely face. She has been betrayed an we both know it. I look around, scanning with a trained killer's eye. Somewhere out there is an assassin. I call out a warning to her and she smiles at me. She knows and she is ready for them. 
> 
> I cannot believe the conceit of these fools. They have the nerve to attack her when they should be falling on their knees in worship? Don't they realize who she is? Can't they see beyond their own stupid ignorance long enough to recognize her superiority? Humans aren't fit to rule themselves, they just aren't. Democracy is a laugh, almost an absurdity. Who would want a country under the control of a mass of ignorant, unwashed peasants? Its not as though they were actually competent to make decisions for themselves. Vinzer Deling was closer to the truth. Absolute power and an iron grip are what the people really want, not choices. People are really much happier when their leaders tell them what to do and what to think. Vinzer's problem was that he wasn't much better than a peasant himself. Edea, on the other hand, is the descendant of a god. Who better to rule humanity than a demi-goddess? 
> 
> The shot rings out. The would be assassin has finally taken his shot. Oh, how I would have loved to see that idiot's face when he saw how casually, how coolly, my Edea stopped that bullet. It amused her. I'm glad. She's so lovely when she smiles. I can't help but laugh myself. The poor, poor assassin must have felt so inept. All that effort and nothing to show for it. Edea waits and wondering what comes next. I know that this is not the end of it, they have no intention of letting her live. They have to go through me however. I will not let them pass. I will protect my Edea.  

> 
> _Squall charges,  
I guess the Rain Boy  
Hasn't learned his lesson -  
I'll teach it again. _
> 
> _Improvement!  
Squall had learned my lesson.  
He lands a lucky shot,  
But now, he'll face Edea.  
  
_
> 
> I can't believe my eyes. Squall?! I can see him racing through the crowds in a car that he's stolen. I can't help but be amused at the sight. He drives as well as he fights, which is to say not well at all. He careens through the streets finally crashing the car into the gates. He leaps up to face me with an expression on his face that implies he thinks that he has a chance of beating me. I haven't laughed so hard in ages. I've got to thank the twerp for that. He's entertaining at the very least. Now if only I could have that little blond chicken-wuus here to make my day's entertainment complete. 
> 
> So there Squall stands, having the nerve to call me a lapdog. I suppose he would know about that. I'd bet he licks Cid's boots clean every morning. The funniest part is that he really believes that he can defeat me! Man, that dumb idiot hasn't learned his lesson has he? He knows that he is no match for me. Time after time, I've beaten him, bested him. I consistently show him how inferior he is and he is still to dumb to understand. Well good. I've been itching to cross swords with him again and I'm in the mood to teach him a lesson or two. I could give him another scar to match that first, I suppose. I think I'll just settle for driving Hyperion through his heart. After all, no other lesson makes quite as big an impression as being killed. I can almost taste his blood on my lips. I'm really looking forward to this. 
> 
> I get the first strike and at first all goes as it usually does. Squall is ill prepared to deal with me as usual. I'm about to cast a fire spell, expecting that it will take him by surprise as usual but I'm on the ground, thrown from my feet by a spell that he'd cast. He backs up his spell with a vicious assault that feels very familiar. It was the same trick I'd played on him when I gave him that scar. The twerp actually managed to learn something. Go figure. 
> 
> He beat me. It takes a few seconds for this to sink in because its the first time I can recall that I've ever lost at anything I've set my mind to. I don't like it much. That little ass won! Fine. I don't like it much but if Mr. I'm-a-good-little-SeeD can learn I sure as hell can. Now, of course, he has to face Edea the Sorceress. Lets see how well he does against her. 
> 
> _He has help!  
A long-haired rifleman  
(Not a SeeD from Balamb),  
Another stands with them. _
> 
> _Rinoa!  
Why are you here?  
Why do you oppose us?  
Can't you see this is right? _
> 
> I sit back to enjoy the spectacle of seeing Squall pounded into a little red mess. After all, he's just a rookie SeeD graduate and she's been a sorceress for most of her life. In a one-on-one battle between a rookie and a professional, the end result is in no doubt. I almost feel sorry for the twerp. Almost. He's exactly what Edea had warned me that I would become: A SeeD nobody destined to die unmourned and unknown, fighting someone else's battles for them. Too bad for Squall. 
> 
> To my utter disappointment, his backup arrives. This fellow is tall and from the look of him, he's the sniper that my Edea so utterly humiliated. He looks like a reject from a bad Galbadian movie serial, with his long ponytailed hair and his ridiculous cowboy getup. He looks like he's all dressed up for Fall Festival. Hell, even when I was a little kid I never put on an outfit that stupid looking. Its so bizarre that I can hardly believe what I'm seeing. Good god, what is SeeD thinking sending kiddies to do men's work? I'm beginning to think that killing him might be an act of kindness, just to save him from making a fool of himself with his lousy fashion sense. 
> 
> A flash of blue and silken black hair and, to my horror, Rinoa is there as well. Ponytail I couldn't care less about and Squall I'm looking forward to seeing dead, but Rinoa... She's one of the few people in the entire world that I would consider a friend. She's got that determined look on her face, mingled with anger and fear. Its the same expression that she had whenever she was talking about Vinzer Deling. But why should Rinoa side with those two SeeDs? Edea dealt with Vinzer already, her enemy is dead. Can't Rinoa see that Edea is so much more qualified, deserving, of being ruler? Can't she see that Timber will be better off under a Sorceress' rule? Power was meant for the better among us, for those that are fit to wield it. A sorceress is far more competent to rule mankind than a greedy and corrupt bunch of old men. Surely she can see that. 
> 
> _They attack,  
They push the Sorceress back  
Calling upon their prowess  
And the powerful Guardians. _
> 
> _Enough!  
Edea unleashes her magic -  
A shining spear of chill anger  
Overthrows my rival. _
> 
> I watch as they all fight, battling against a woman that they should be helping, defending, instead. Edea's magic is powerful but they fight back with the power of the Guardians. Yet, she fights on, matching them spell for spell, vicious attack for vicious attack. Whenever the Guardians would shield them from her, she destroys that protection with contemptuous ease. I watch her, this virtuoso of the mystic arts. It never ceases to amaze me at how much strength that fragile form has, how much incredible skill. 
> 
> Still, it is three against one and she has their weapons to deal with as well. I want to help her, I make a move to rush at them but a sharp glance from her stops me dead in my tracks. This is her fight and I am not to interfere. I can understand that, its the way of a warrior and my Edea has the mind of a warrior. Its one of the things that I love about her. Finally, Squall pushes her too far and has only succeeded in making her angry. 
> 
> I have never seen a sorceress driven to rage before; its a terrifyingly wonderful sight. If you've ever seen it, the power of outrage, you'll understand what I mean. I can see her standing there, her eyes flashing with anger and annoyance. Despite their best efforts it wasn't good enough. As I knew it would be, Squall was grossly outmatched by my Queen. 
> 
> The temperature drops and a ribbon of crystalline ice wafts upwards in response to her fury. Icy spears of anger literally take shape as she hisses her contempt for her enemies. I watch in immense satisfaction as those icy shards rip through Squall with utmost ease. His face is white with shock and pain and incomprehension. Watching him fall to the earth like a broken rag doll sends shivers of pleasure through me. 
> 
> _My moment,  
Torn away from me by you.  
This time you will pay,  
Now, Squall, you are mine. _
> 
> You robbed my of my moment of glory and now she's angry at me with my failure. I will redeem myself in her eyes. I will correct my weak mistake. I took you for granted, resting on the laurels of my achievements, when I should have been pushing myself harder and further. I won't make that mistake again. I will reclaim my spotlight. I will cleanse my dishonour in your blood. 
> 
> She's given you to me to do with as I see fit and I find myself given a second chance. If I hadn't hated you before, Squall, I do now. You cheated me of everything I deserved and you will pay the price. You dared to attack my beloved Edea and you will suffer for that too. I will savour every moment of your agony, your screams of pain, as I make you repay me with your life's blood. By the time I am done with you, you will plead for me to end your worthless life. Live the life of a SeeD and expect to die like one. 
> 
> Eventually I may even let you die. For now, however, you are mine and I will wring every moment of satisfaction from it that I can. If I have to heal your injuries a thousand times, I will, just so I can hear you suffer that much longer. 
> 
> Now who is the better of us? 
> 
> FIN.


End file.
